Crestline Management LP Takes Position in Hawkins, Inc. (NASDAQ:HWKN)

Crestline Management LP acquired a new stake in Hawkins, Inc. (NASDAQ:HWKN - Free Report) during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm acquired 2,622 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock, valued at approximately $322,000.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in HWKN. Wasatch Advisors LP acquired a new stake in shares of Hawkins in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $42,466,000. Vaughan Nelson Investment Management L.P. increased its holdings in Hawkins by 487.7% during the fourth quarter. Vaughan Nelson Investment Management L.P. now owns 254,837 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock worth $31,260,000 after buying an additional 211,472 shares during the last quarter. Raymond James Financial Inc. acquired a new position in Hawkins during the fourth quarter worth $13,087,000. Cerity Partners LLC increased its holdings in Hawkins by 900.2% during the fourth quarter. Cerity Partners LLC now owns 82,576 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock worth $10,166,000 after buying an additional 74,320 shares during the last quarter. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased its holdings in Hawkins by 61.9% during the fourth quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 149,616 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock worth $18,353,000 after buying an additional 57,179 shares during the last quarter. 69.71% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Hawkins Stock Performance

HWKN stock traded up $2.35 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $121.17. 37,232 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 130,963. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.23, a current ratio of 2.50 and a quick ratio of 1.53. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $114.02 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $117.03. Hawkins, Inc. has a one year low of $82.83 and a one year high of $139.55. The firm has a market capitalization of $2.54 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 30.91, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.80 and a beta of 0.87.

Hawkins (NASDAQ:HWKN - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, May 14th. The specialty chemicals company reported $0.78 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.74 by $0.04. Hawkins had a net margin of 8.60% and a return on equity of 18.95%. The firm had revenue of $245.32 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $230.69 million. Equities research analysts forecast that Hawkins, Inc. will post 4 EPS for the current year.

Hawkins Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 13th. Shareholders of record on Friday, May 30th will be given a dividend of $0.18 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, May 30th. This represents a $0.72 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.59%. Hawkins's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 18.37%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts recently weighed in on the stock. BWS Financial restated a "buy" rating and set a $160.00 target price on shares of Hawkins in a report on Thursday. CJS Securities assumed coverage on shares of Hawkins in a report on Tuesday, April 1st. They set a "market outperform" rating and a $125.00 target price on the stock.

Hawkins Company Profile

Hawkins, Inc operates as a specialty chemical and ingredients company in the United States. It operates through three segments: Industrial, Water Treatment, and Health and Nutrition. The Industrial segment offers industrial chemicals, products, and services to agriculture, chemical processing, electronics, energy, food, pharmaceutical, and plating industries.